I’ve got beef

My first memory of Dr. Phil is watching Oprah with my mom back in the late 90’s when she was being sued by the Texan beef industry. I guess Dr. Phil kept Oprah sane during the trial and she felt that he should be released into the wilds of the American conscience to counsel, console, and beat weakness out of people.

And I’ll be honest…I sorta fell under the spell. Watching him yell at cheating husbands and bratty teenagers was sorta thrilling especially in the pre-reality show universe we all used to live in.

I’ve also been guilty of checking out his books (not buying them…god no).

But there’s always been something kinda weird about him and his family. Like, the wife who attends all his shows. I’m quite sure I don’t love anyone enough to go to work with them every day. And the son who married the Playboy playmate even though his dad has repeatedly sounded the battle cry against porn. And the fact that he ALWAYS THINKS HE’S RIGHT. Something about him weirds me out.

So, given my propensity to visit gossip sites on a daily basis, it’s not surprising that I found this article on MSN and thought I’d share. Turns out, Dr. Phil IS a loony! :

Of course, it goes without saying (although I’m saying it now) that much of my cynicism for the entire ‘self-help’ industry stems from my interaction with and subsequent learning from my up and coming marketer/copywriter boyfriend. Here’s a little secret: the self-help market is HUGE and the public is practically begging to throw money at people who offer up advice. (if you’re curious about this, check out the blogs in my ‘Empire Building’ section) So, really…Dr. Phil was just tapping into an insanely lucrative market and we all fell for it.

But now, c’mon America, it’s time to “get real” and stop taking this guy seriously.

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3 Responses to “I’ve got beef”

I have an extreme distaste for this man, and I have since his show began. While everyone delighted in his “tough love” approach the usually meek me provoked countless arguments about how completely unethical he was/is. I remember having intense arguments with an ex boyfriend who thought Dr. Phil to be the best thing since sliced bread.

As someone in the field of therapy and counseling, he violates ethical principles right and left. Once, I saw a sex therapist absolutely rip him a new one on the show because he implied that any relationship that is not monogamous and heterosexual is the product of psychological/mental disturbance. This is a common theme with him – if he doesn’t like it, the person doing it has a mental disorder.

Also he just plain isn’t a good therapist – he only uses one technique, the “tough love” one. That doesn’t work on every client, and a skilled therapist is able use a variety of approaches. Plus, the idea of therapy on TV is just…wrong. People will not let their guard down and be genuine when watched by an audience, and if they cannot do that, they cannot make steps towards healing.

Ugh, anyway. He is no better than Maury, in fact, he is worse than Maury, because Maury never pretends to be a mental health professional.

P.S. I may steal this article for my blog, because I have so passionately disliked Dr. Phil for so long. 🙂 I’ll give you credit though!

I remember when Jerry Springer had a similar format as the Dr. Phil show. I don’t remember when Jerry made the leap into the “Jerry! Jerry!” persona. I think Dr. P is walking the line between the person and persona. He often sounds real and like a real nut at the same time.